Combination casket and burial vault



May 8, 1928. 1,668,728

G. A. NORRIE `COMBINATION GASKET AND BURIAL VAULT Filed May 21. 1927lKif Patented May 8, 1928.`

UNLTED STATES GEORGE A. NonRIE, on WAmInsHA,` wIscoNsnr.

COMBINATION GASKET Aim BURIAL vAULT;

' a Application nldnay 2i, 1927. semi no, 193,239.

This invention pertains to improvements 1n burial caskets, and hasprimarily for"1ts object to provide a comparatively light, inT

expensive, durable, and highly attractive- 5 casket, Whiclnbecause otthe permanent na ture of its structure, will serveas a vault to preventrapid disintegration of "the,

corpse. f I A A further object'of the invention is to lo provide acasket built up `from panels of in-` destructibvle material, which `willreadily lend itself to any type or' `decoration or finish,`

suoli as plain colors, or an imitation of Wood.

A further objectis tof-provide means in 5 c-ombinat-ionwith acaskettorftaking vthe Weight of the earth fromtlielcasket toy prevent collapseof the casket and settling' of the ground 'above the same.

With the above and other objects in View,

20 which will appear as the description pro ceeds, the invention residesin the novel construction, combination and arrangement of partssubstantially hereinafter described and more particularly defined by theap# 25 pended claims, it being understood that such changes in the.precise embodiment ofthe herein disclosed invention may be made as comeWithin the scope ot the. claims.

.Figure 1 is a Vtransverse section taken 30 through a casket constructedin accordance With the present invention, and illust ating thesan'iepositioned in the ground.

Figure 2 is a side elevation with parts i broken away and in section.

ln the'accompanying (innings is illustrated one. complete example oi thephysical embodiment ot the present invention con# structed according tothe best mode so far devised for the practical, application ot theprinciples thereof.

Referring noni' more particularly to the accompanying drawings, whereinthe pre- :lierred torni of the invention is illustrated, the casket isdesignated by the numeral 1, the sides of the same being constructed`from panels 2 formed from. any permanent composit-ion, such asconcrete, asbestos, or the like. Y The bottom 3 of the casket ispreferably formed of sheet metal having vertical side extensions 4 forthe recept-ion of the sidev walls 2. AShould it be desired to provide amore solid permanent structure, a bottom panel 5 constructed ot suitablecomposition` may also be employed. The interior of the casket may beiinished in the usual tufted style, orfwith any other form of`decoration that maybe desired. i

` The upper edge of the casket is provided With a metal rirn 6 having adependin lip 7 which engages the interior of the wa ls2.

As best shown in Figure 1', it will be noted that the rim 6 projectsover the side of the ycasket and covers a decorative inishing ormoulding, `which moulding may also be applied to the bottom edge of thecasket as well as the corners e i" A coverS, preferably stamped fromsheet metal and arched upwardly serves as aclo-` sure ior the casket,and 1diie*to'tlie'arch or dome Vfeature,"obviously the. sides of thecasket "maybe reducedtin height still leavle* Sufficient; @with fOl thereception@ the Corpse* i l, From the foregoing it will readily be seenthat a very inexpensive and simple structure has been provided, which,when assembled,

`forms a practicalhv air-tight, durable struc ture ot a permanentnature, which is not subject to disintegration.

For receiving lthe Weight of the earth above the casket after the samehas been placed'in the ground, it is proposed to einploy an additionalhood 9 for the top of the casket. This hood, torconvenience in han dlingand manufacture, may be constructed in sections 10, either cast orotherwise formed from a composition of a permanent character, such asconcrete or the like. Each see` tion is provided with overlappingtongues 11 engaged in grooves 12 formed in the adjacent section.Thus,`when the sections are positioned upon the top of the casket theyPil) form a continuous interlocked dome tor the support of the earthabove the casket.

To assist in supporting the weight of the earth above the casket,pedestals 13 formed of concrete, or other suitable material, may be usedalong side of the coflin at spaced intervals, preferably at theintersection of the sections 10. It desired, the pedestals 13, as wellas the casket, may be positioned upon upon a base 14 of. concrete,stone, or other desirable materal, which will prevent settling of thecasket into the ground.

Obviously, certain of the elements may be eliminated Without departingfrom the invention, which primarily consists in the structure of thecasket itself. It will` also be appreciated that the present inventionhas all of the advantages of a cast or moulded vault or casket, with theadditional adthe composition material employed in the sides of thecasket readily lends itself to Vthe reception of paint or otherfinishing materials.

I Claim:

1. Ahurial casket comprising separate sde Wall panels formed o'l'permanent compositilini material, a metal bottoni for the reception oitsaid side wall panels and having upturned edges to assist in retainingsaid panels in assembled relation, a bottom panel adapted to engage theinnerlsides of the side Wall panels to securely hold them against theedges of said metal'bottom, a metal rim disposed upon the top edges otsaid side Wall panels and provided with a depending lip vengaging theinner sides ot said side Wall panels, and a domed Cover adapted to seatupon said rim and provided with a depending lip to engage the lip ofVupturned edges for engaging the outer faces of said side Walls, abottom panel formed ot permanent composition material and engaging theinner faces of said side Wall panels to hold the same against theupturned edges of said metal bottom, a metal rim mounted upon the topedges of said side Walls and provided with a depending lip engagng theinner faces of said side walls, and a domed metallic eover adapted toseat upon rsaid metal rim and provided `with a depending lip forengagement with the lip ot' said metal rim to form' arelatively tighteonnee tion and relieve inward strain upon the rim.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto setmy hand atMilwaukee, in the eounty of Milwaukee and State olf Wiscousin.

GEORGE A. NORRIE.

